With the hectic pace of life these days, homeowners are looking for practical and inexpensive solutions to cleaning challenges — solutions that can make like a little easier. In fact, some of the cleaning solutions might already be right there in your home.

Many refrigerators now have a stainless steel exterior and they show every mark. A quick spritz with a window cleaner, such as Windex, and the shine is restored. If there are oil marks, like fingerprints, a cleaning with a mild detergent like dishwashing soap will get the prints off. Just remember to rinse of the soap residue.

Cleaning aluminum can be as easy as using a solution of borax. Borax is a very useful and eco-friendly cleaning compound. Borax is found in laundry booster, certain hand soaps and in some toothpastes. But your probably want a purer form, so you can order borax online or find it as one of these products, sold at most grocery stores — 20 Mule Team Borax (pure borax), Boraxo powdered hand soap or in tooth bleaching formulas (check the label for borax or sodium tetraborate). Other uses for borax include: insect killer, particularly in roach killing products and as moth-preventative (10% solution on wool), fungicide, herbicide, desiccant and laundry booster. However, just because it is a “green” product does not mean it is not strong. Be sure to wear gloves and eye protection.

One of the neatest household cleaning tips comes from Brad Piece of OSA Janitorial Services. Pierce says, “Hard to remove stains in the toilet or bathtub can be removed by using denture tablets. Toss in a couple of tablets, let sit for an hour or so and rinse out. Clean with your regular cleaning product and you should have a bright, shiny porcelain fixture. Don’t forget the toilet tank as it could stand to be cleaned, too.”

Tired of the soap and hard water scum in the shower? Piece has a solution for that problem as well. “Clean the shower with CLR, a product that can be purchased in most stores. Clean the shower and rinse thoroughly. To help prevent a reoccurrence of the buildup, apply a thin coat of automobile wax on the walls and doors. A liquid wax would be easier to apply than a paste. Do not apply wax to the floor as it may make it too slick and cause falls.”

Small wood scratches on your furniture or doors may be repaired with a repair pencil that can be purchased at any hardware or big box home repair store. The pencils come in various colors so you may want to take a picture of the area to be repaired with your phone and you can compare the color at the store.

Cleaning doesn’t have to be a huge chore. A few simple tricks can make cleaning a breeze. Take a few minutes to try these quick and economical cleaning solutions, and kick your feet up for the rest and relaxation you deserve in your clean home.